OK all you sharpening experts.  I have a question.  The church secretaries cornered me today and asked me if I could sharpen their guillotine paper cutter.  It has an angled blade and I'm sure I can sharpen it but I need a little guidance.  Any instructions?

Ron I did one for the guys at work. I simply brought the handle home with blade on it, clamped it up and took a fine file to it, a couple passes, then honed it with a stone, it was good to go.

It didn't look like rocket science John. Lew, I saw that video but find the sharpener anywhere. I wonder if I could clamp the blade in a vise and you hit up with an ROS and some 220 grit paper.

It didn't look like rocket science John. Lew, I saw that video but find the sharpener anywhere. I wonder if I could clamp the blade in a vise and you hit up with an ROS and some 220 grit paper.

Your idea would work fine Ron, the main thing is to get a fresh edge on it, and the burrs off. The slicer is not razor sharp, that is not what you are after, you only need to expose fresh metal, kind of like a machete, the machete performs best with a ragged edge on it so it can rip and slash and gnaw, the edge of a paper cutter is kind of the same principle but on a finer scale. So ya, I think an ROS starting with perhaps 120, then 220 and maybe then hit it with an oil stone, the plane ol stone you use to sharpen a pocket knife, would do just well.

Won't work John. Most paper cutters are ground flat like scissors and ANY edge off of flat will cause them not to cut.

 

You'll find if you look at that edge real close with a magnifying loop it is only worn on one side and rounded on the cutting edge.

 

A flat diamond stone will put that edge back to flat but you'll need something to keep the diamond flat to the surface so you end up with a nice 90 degree FLAT edge.

 

Usually they go dull over time from cutting large stacks of paper.

 

Same process as scissors.  But in this throw away age nobody but hairdressers get their scissors sharpened any more.

Well you don't want to mess with the flat side that's for sure, just dress it at the opposite side and you'll be fine, it worked for us. Take a light pass on the flat side just to nip off the burrs.

Mike, this is an odd ball cutter.  Like you said, most cutters have a straight bladed on them but this one has a back rake on it.  The factory edge looks like they sharpened it with a 60 grit stone.

Make a wood holder for the stone to keep it at the right angle you need.

 

2 pieces of scrap at the same angle you need then maybe silicone the stone to the wood.

 

Then just run it along the edge of the blade and the stone against the "cutting" edge.

Thanks Mike.  I'll try it.

Ron, for $35, or less, for a decent Swingline cutter, why bother.

 

Or, I borrowed my wife's cutter and cut some (a lot) of sand paper. When she got it back, she thanked me for sharpening it.

Ron, for $35, or less, for a decent Swingline cutter, why bother.

 

Or, I borrowed my wife's cutter and cut some (a lot) of sand paper. When she got it back, she thanked me for sharpening it.

Great idea Gene! The sand paper part.

At $35 for a decent Swingline cutter, why bother?

 

OTOH, I absconded with the wife's old wooden bed type cutter and cut a bunch of sand paper. When I brought it back, she thought I'd sharpened it.

Its kind of a challenge at this point Gene.

Its kind of a challenge at this point Gene.

Are you having issues sharpening it Ron?

I won't attempt it until the middle of the week John.

Ths is one of those thinking out loud things, but I tune up my carbide router bits by using a small diamond stone on the flat side of the cutter, never touching the bevel. I'm wondering if the knife was removed from the hanle, could you use a piece of SC sandpaper and a glass palte (think scary sharp) and hone the flat side to get an edge? Such an effort wouldn't remove much metal so I don't think the clearance to the table would be affected. I know this flies in the face of all the "sharpen the bevel" thoughts, but stioll seems at least plausible (or not). Anyway, just thinking out loud.

Follow the  angles already there.